


I Can Barely Breath and All I want To Do Is Fall in Deep

by annie0611



Category: Brooklyn Nine-Nine (TV)
Genre: F/M, Mutual Pining, Pre-Relationship, Valentine's Day, set in s2
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-14
Updated: 2019-02-14
Packaged: 2019-10-28 08:05:03
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,106
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17783666
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/annie0611/pseuds/annie0611
Summary: Amy and Jake spend Valentine's Day on a Stake Out. Pre-Relationship, set after the Boyle-Linetti wedding.Title: Into You by Ariana Grande





	I Can Barely Breath and All I want To Do Is Fall in Deep

**Author's Note:**

> Pining Jake and Amy give me life. Let me know what you think in terms of kudos or comments.

Amy typically doesn’t mind working Valentine’s Day. Most years, she would much rather be progressing her career than sitting at home eating takeout and watching T.V., wallowing in her own loneliness. This year, however, she is newly single and pining after a coworker that she can never date—thanks in part to her own “no dating cops” rule, and the last thing she wants to do is sit in a car for 6 hours with said coworker. When Holt assigned cases this morning, Amy swears she felt all of the air leave the room at “Peralta, take Santiago for the Russo case. Our CI says to expect some activity after the dinner rush tonight. I want you both there in case something goes down.” 

Charles was of course ecstatic claiming this was their chance to confess their love for each other. Rosa snorted, knowing full well how awkward this will be, and Gina just looked amused. The whole precinct could feel the tension between Amy and Jake, ever since the Boyle-Linetti wedding. There has been some flirty banter, but anytime it becomes too real Amy finds herself panicking and the days that follow are usually awkward and uncomfortably silent between the two partners. Eventually, things settle into a normal routine until it happens again. This time, the event took place yesterday. Eyes lingered just a few moments too long causing Amy’s heart to beat nearly out of her chest. Before she knew it, she was on the roof having a shame cigarette. She’d been avoiding Jake ever since, and this stake out really put a damper on things. 

So now, they sit in his beat-up Mustang outside of a hole-in-the-wall family owned restaurant on arguably the most romantic day of the year (though Amy is partial to New Year’s Eve, personally). It admittedly has not been as awful as Amy previously thought, but it’s mostly been small talk. How’s that one case going, any thoughts on the new options in the vending machine, etc. Nothing too personal and nothing that could lead to flirting, which is a big accomplishment when you consider Jake’s two modes of conversation are joking sarcasm and joking flirtation. But it’s quiet right now, there is no conversation and the silence between the end of one song and the beginning of the next is deafening in the small car. 

“God this is so lame, right? Who is going to commit a felony on the most romantic day of the year?” Jake cracks, in an obvious attempt to cut some of the awkwardness. 

“I don’t know, it’s actually a decent cover. The restaurant will be so busy, nobody would notice if you step out and commit a shady transaction in the back alleyway. It makes sense to me. You couldn’t do that on a regular night because your absence would be felt, and you can’t do it on a super slow night either because then you don’t have the bustle of activity to hide what you’re doing,” Amy rambles on. It isn’t until she catches Jake’s eyes and see the amusement in them that she realizes she’s been going on for some time about the logistics of dealing in crime while owning a small business. When she finally trails off, Jake laughs, and the sound pools in Amy’s soul. Jake has the best laugh, it’s uninhibited and loud and addicting. 

He is still smiling when he shakes his head at Amy, “Anyways, dork. You’re telling me if we weren’t on this stupid stake out, you wouldn’t be having dinner at some perfectly acceptable restaurant with an Eric or Todd or whoever?”

Amy bites her lip nervously, they’re now treading into a dangerous territory, but she plays along anyways, “You don’t go on first dates on Valentine’s Day, Jake. And as a matter of fact, if I weren’t here, I’d just be at home—”

“Watching reruns of SVU and eating Chinese take-out. Obviously.”

“Alright, stalker. Well what would you be doing? Taking some poor girl to Sal’s for display temperature meat-supreme?” Amy challenges. Two can play the ‘I know you better’ game. 

Amy expects another wise crack, but when she looks at Jake his eyes are doing that thing where they are so full of tenderness and Amy feels her face flushing. After a brief pause, he glances back to the restaurant, “Nah. Honestly, I haven’t been on a date in months. I’ve been striking out in the love department ever since Sophia dumped me.” 

Amy ignores the warning signs shouting at her to change the subject and probes further, “I find that hard to believe. Who can possibly resist the Peralta charm?” 

This time when Jake looks at her, Amy’s heart literally stops, and she curses herself for not changing the subject. He keeps his eyes steady on her before he runs his tongue over his lips quickly (a nervous habit, not that Amy pays attention to what he does with his tongue), “It doesn’t seem to have much of an effect on you.”

The moment lasts for about two seconds before Amy tears her gaze away and focuses on the restaurant instead. She starts to feel the panic set in and is quickly overwhelmed. She either wants to kiss Jake or do a mad dash out of his car and not stop until she’s in her own apartment. Luckily, outside of Russo’s is none other than Ralph Russo and the suspected buyer. 

The bust is smooth, and the paperwork doesn’t take too long. Amy is quick to get out of the precinct and into the sanctity of her own home before Jake or anyone else for that matter is able to stop her for a conversation. She is just settling in on her couch, take out spread across her coffee table and ready to press play on the DVR when she hears a knock on her door. 

She rolls her eyes. Honestly, if her neighbor loses her key one more time, Amy is strongly considering writing a letter to the landlord. If she can’t be responsible enough to not lose her keys, is she really responsible enough to live in an apartment? Amy huffs and stomps her way to the front door, “Ruth, are you kidding me? How many times do I have to tell you, if you just put the key on your—” Amy is cut off by the person standing on the other side of her door. It is not her neighbor, for once, but Jake. Jake, her partner, standing at her front door looking anxious, “Oh you aren’t Ruth.” 

“Nope, and I gotta say…. I’m glad. Sounds like she was about to get a signature Santiago lecture,” Jake grins, running his hand through his hair (another nervous habit, Amy suspects). 

“You would not believe how many times she misplaces her keys,” Amy laughs nervously, folding her arms across her chest. It just now occurs to her that she is standing in her doorway and probably looks like a disaster. She hastily changed into her oldest, rattiest NYPD t-shirt and pajama shorts when she got home. Her hair is messily thrown into a low bun and she’s even wearing her glasses. Normally she’d be embarrassed, but she’s much more preoccupied with why Jake is at her apartment. 

“Can I come in?” He asks. His tone is light and joking, but if the late-night visit isn’t enough to tip Amy off that something is up, the look in his eyes – the same look that’s become too frequent over the last couple of months, the look he gave her when he told her he liked her, and again when he told her that it was real, the same look he had when Teddy outed her crush on him, and the look her gave her at their friends’ parent’s wedding, that look – well that look, definitely lets her know this isn’t a casual friendly visit. Not that they have those kinds of visits, anyways. 

“Yea-yes, of course. Please, come in,” Amy steps aside, allowing Jake into the comfort of her home and safe place. 

He takes a few glances around before sitting cautiously on Amy’s couch, smirking to himself when he sees Amy’s food and the episode of SVU ready to be played on her television screen. She blushes, recalling how well he does know her. 

“Soo,” Amy sits on the opposite end of Jake and plays with her fingers anxiously. 

“You can relax, Ames. I’m not here to make a move on you because I know how much you’d hate that,”

She’s not sure if shocked is the right word, but that’s definitely not what she thought he was going to say when he got here, “Jake, I—”

“No, I’m sorry, that wasn’t fair,” he starts, running his hand through his hair again. Amy tries not to notice how good he looks when he does that, “Listen, I came here to apologize. I was going to apologize after we finished the paperwork, but you ran out so fast I didn’t really get the chance.” 

He’s right, of course, she had practically sprinted to her car. She saw him coming to speak to her and she just bolted, which was not cool of her. 

His voice is softer when he continues, “I think we can both agree things have been…awkward, at best as of late. And I just wanted to say that I’m sorry, because I have been pushing you and that’s not right. I know you aren’t dating cops anymore, but it just sucks okay? Honestly, I felt like we were finally about to get our chance and then you threw that on me. I didn’t get it at first, but now I get it. And it’s okay.”

It always surprises Amy when Jake is so sincere about anything, but especially about his feelings. She suddenly feels very guilty, because it’s not just Jake. She has been an equal participant in the flirting, and when she is being honest with herself, she likes it and she likes him. But the rule is there for a reason and she needs to stand by that. “You don’t have to apologize… It’s my fault. I’m the one with this stupid rule but here I am, the one making things weird.”

Jake grins though, “so you agree, the rule is stupid?”

Amy rolls her eyes and tries to stop herself from smiling, “It’s stupid, but it’s also important. If I’m being honest, I’m not ready to jump in a relationship yet. And until I am ready, I don’t want things to be weird for us. I just want us to be like we were before all of this.”

Jake nods in agreeance but she can’t help but notice he is a little smug at her admittance that it is stupid, “Alright, let’s be like we were before then. As long as you know, that when you are ready, the Peralta charm is coming back.” 

“Jake”

“Ames,” he matches her tone, playfully.

She rolls her eyes again and suddenly they feel back in sync, “I’m not going to eat all of this food by myself, do you want some?” 

Jake is digging into the spring rolls before she even gets the question out, flopping himself comfortably back into her couch and pressing play on the DVR. The rest of the night is spent overeating Chinese food, discussing possible theories for various cases, and laughing… a lot. Around 3:00 a.m., after the credits roll past on their 5th episode of SVU, Jake stretches his arms and yawns. 

Amy walks him to the door and before he leaves, he turns to her, wrapping her in a hug—a friend hug, he insists—and thanks her, “Tonight was really fun, Ames.” 

“It was. Thanks for coming by, seriously. We needed this.” 

He gives her one last squeeze before releasing her and heading out the door. When she closes the door behind him, she sinks to the floor and tucks her hair behind her ears. This might be the best Valentine’s Day she’s ever had. 

The next year, of course, exceeds her expectations. They spend it together, but instead of take-out, Jake cooks her a meal and there are candles lit. He tells her he loves her, and she says it back, because she isn’t afraid anymore. He kisses her tenderly between each declaration. They do watch SVU, but it’s only after they’ve made love (three times, but Amy isn’t counting). They lay entangled in Amy’s bed; the title screen playing and laugh about the time Amy tried to convince Jake she just wanted to be friends.


End file.
